who run the world? girls. badass women and why they're badass

This morning, walking from my car to a Starbucks, I was stopped andharassed three times in 6 minutes. While it should bevirtually irrelevant what I was wearing, I'll mention it anyways.Black pants, slip-on Vans and a mock turtleneck shirt (because I’llbe damned if someone tries to convince me mock turtleneck shirtsaren't cool.) The first time I was stopped was by a man who asked meif me and my "fine ass" wanted to "hop in his car and drive away". Iignored him easily enough. The second was by another man who made meaware that my blonde hair reminded him of a woman in his past wholoved having sex with him. Now I realize it's easier just to keep myhead down. The third was by (you guessed it) a man who called me abitch when I didn't tell him my name. 8:13 to 8:19 in the morning. Ittook all of six minutes for me to feel pretty shitty about being awoman.

Unfortunately, I am not alone in feeling less than simply because Ihave boobs and a vagina. I'm not the first woman to be casually toldgirls don't deserve to be paid as much as men because we "don't workas hard." I am not, and will not be, the only woman to ever feel likedefending herself against these unwanted advances will get her killed. This idea isn't new but it sureis getting fucking old.

In lieu of what is quite an obvious solution to the problem of genderinequality (ex. start acknowledging that women are also humans) I havecompiled a list of incredible women and reminders why we're totally badass for the next day it's hard for me to get excited about just walkingoutside to get a cup of coffee.

1. “A study by Zenger and Folkman seems to demonstrate prettystrongly that women are seen as better leaders than men by thosearound them. And there are other studies indicating that companiesthat have a higher representation of women in management ranks aremore profitable and have higher employee productivity. And yet – I’venoted this statistic before, but I’ll say it again in this context:only 33 of the Fortune 1,000 are headed by women.”

2. J.K. Rowling, queen of virtually everything, wrote the bestselling book franchise of all time. And, additionally, created one ofthe most inspiring characters of our generation. Hermione, not Harry.Because, duh.

3. Beyoncé. Beyoncé Beyoncé Beyoncé Beyoncé. I would list all of heraccomplishments. But none of us have that kind of time. Except, ofcourse, Beyoncé.

4. Here’s a video showcasing, Simone Biles, who needs no introduction. "At just 19, she's already made history. Not only is Bilesthe first female gymnast to win three world all-around titles in arow, she's also the first African-American gymnast to become the worldall-around champion."

5.Emmeline Pankhurst co-founded the Women's Social and PoliticalUnion (WSPU) in 1903 with a clear agenda focused on direct action towin women the vote. 'Deeds not words, was to be our permanent motto’,she would later say. These words soon rang true. It was at HollowayPrison that Emmeline Pankhurst would stage her first hunger strike,withstanding violence and abuse to enable all women the right to vote.She is also responsible for this bad ass quote, "Trust in God - shewill provide.”

6. Malala Yousafzai. A young woman who, on October 9, 2012, was shotin the head three times when a gunman boarded Malala's school bus inPakistan. Her crime? Speaking out about education for girls. Whilethat is enough bravery for one lifetime, she then went on to continueto educate us all on equal rights. Oh yeah, at age 17 she also became the youngest person in history to receive a Nobel Peace Prize.

7. Frida Kahlo. To understand Frida is to understand her pain. Thatdoesn’t make her a victim of her own suffering - quite the contrary.The many outwood traumas that plagued her life - including a horrificbus accident leaving her crippled and unable to conceive - gave herthe tools in which to paint her inner truth. Her husband Diego Riveraonce talked about Frida’s art as 'paintings that exalted the femininequalities of endurance and truth, reality, cruelty, and suffering.' Hewould go on to conclude: 'Never before has a woman put such agonizedpoetry on canvas.' 'I paint my own reality', Frida Kahlo once said.Her paintings are fearless because they paint the conflicting dualityof female experience. In some respects, Frida's art is both the rosepetal and the thorn.

These women are merely a drop in the bucket of incredible forces. Theystart a list that is lengthy but nowhere near complete.